“The impact of not having capable foreign language guides is that
we cannot really grow inbound tourism numbers, especially during
peak season,” says Juliane Loubser, MD of Fairfield Tours. “Now,
whenever we get a peak season request from The Netherlands or
Germany, we have to tell the group that we can only offer the tour
with an English-speaking guide.” Loubser says this often puts the
clients off coming to South Africa. “There has also been an
increase in demand for privately guided tours, which we
immediately have to decline because we know we are short-staffed
on guides.”
Brendan McCarthy, National Head of Operations, ILIOS Travel, says:
“For us to remain a viable destination to emerging markets we need
to cater for their needs, and this includes catering for their
language requirements.” McCarthy says there is an increased need
to cater for emerging markets, specifically Portuguese and Spanish
speaking markets. Other languages, such as Vietnamese, Russian,
and Arabic, remain as specialist languages, according to McCarthy
but he also points out that German- and Italian-speaking guides
remain in high demand.
Alisha Kirk, Guide Academy Manager of Tourvest Destination
Management, says: “There is a language gap, and has been for
years. Our ability as South Africans to be able to speak in our 11
official languages doesn’t assist us in hosting foreign guests who
cannot communicate in any of our official languages. There needs
to be a greater drive to introduce foreign languages at school

level with the ability of introducing exchange programmes with
countries that form part of that programme.” Julie Mackenzie,
Operations Manager of Tourvest DMC, adds: `Most of the guides in-
country with these languages are aged from 40 to 70+ and there are
simply not enough to facilitate the market we already have and
definitely hinder any growth of these markets. The older guides
are by far the most experienced and, often, enthusiastic, but of
course there will come a time in the not too distant future when
they are no longer willing to travel for extended lengths of
time.”
Francois Collin, Media Relations at the National Federation of
Tourist Guides and Affiliates, says the guides who are coming up
do not have the same work ethic as previous generations. According
to Collin, the older generation of guides accepted that they would
be working 16-hour days and driving long distances. “There was no
certificate in those days. All the training was done on the job.”
Now Collin says that young guides do the necessary courses, get
the certificates, and come into the industry thinking they are
qualified.
“They want to walk straight into the top-level guiding jobs,
despite not having the practical experience for it,” he says,
adding that when the realities of the job become apparent, many of
the younger guides decide to leave the industry rather than work
their way to the top
www.sami.co.za V.2961

In exciting news for digital nomads, South Africa will launch a new digital nomad visa featuring two categories: a remote working visa and a critical skills visa. These visas aim to attract remote workers and skilled professionals globally as part of South Africa’s efforts to position itself as a global hub. Once put into action, this move will establish the country as only the fifth African nation offering this kind of visa to people who spend long periods working in different countries. V.5338
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The Home Affairs official was accused of selling passports at R3,000 to foreigners A 34-year-old former Department of Home Affairs employee will spend the weekend behind bars after being arrested on fraud and corruption charges. Malusi Mlondo appeared briefly in the Durban Specialised Commercial Crime Court on Thursday and was remanded in custody. V.5329
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Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi said the arrest demonstrated the department`s zero-tolerance against corruption. • A Department of Home Affairs employee in Limpopo was sentenced to an effective eight years in jail for fraud and corruption. • NPA spokesperson Mashudu Malaba-Dzhangi said Amos Ngwenyama accepted R1 000 to fraudulently issue a birth certificate. • Minister Aaron Motsoaledi said the sentencing demonstrated the department`s commitment to tackling corruption. V.5330
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A United Kingdom (UK) citizen - who laid a criminal charge of corruption against a Home Affairs official who wanted R60 000 to renew the retirement visas of him and his wife - is still waiting for the police probe to show results. He is also still waiting for the visas he applied for in 2022. A United Kingdom (UK) citizen - who laid a criminal charge of corruption against a Home Affairs official who wanted R60 000 to renew the retirement visas of him and his wife - is still waiting for the police probe to show results. He is also still waiting for the visas he applied for in 2022. V.5331
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With just a few weeks to go until the 2024 elections, the Department of Home Affairs has publicized the nation`s identification document (ID) process. The department acknowledges the critical role of voter identification in facilitating participation and ensuring electoral fairness. Delays and inefficiencies at Home Affairs have historically impeded the democratic right to vote, particularly affecting those in rural areas. V.5332
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SAUDI VISA FOR AFRICAN CITIZENS South Africa is not among the countries exempt from Saudi Arabia visa requirements, therefore a Saudi Arabia visa is required. South Africans need a current visa to travel to Saudi Arabia lawfully. South African citizens can obtain a Saudi electronic visa. Saudi Arabia is located in the Middle East. The eVisa is an electronic visa that permits citizens from approximately 50 countries to travel to Saudi Arabia for tourism. V.5333
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I recently renewed my passport at Home Affairs in a bank branch and was very impressed with the service and quick turnaround time. The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) and major banks first launched the option to do Smart ID card and passport applications via select bank branches in 2016. It has slowly grown to around 30 locations, including branches from Absa, Discovery Bank, FNB, Investec, Nedbank, and Standard Bank. V.5334
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The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) has spent over R412.95 million in legal fees since the start of the 2018/19 financial year - with over R117.69 million of this spent between 1 April 2023 and 29 February 2024. This was revealed by the Minister of Home Affairs, Aaron Motsoaledi, in a recent written response in parliament. DHA has seen an exponential increase in the amount that it spends on litigation, with the current amount for 2023/24 (note these figures are until the end of February, several months short of the full financial year) nearly 16 times that of the amount spent in 2018/19. V.5335
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Short on time? Here are the highlights: • Following recent announcements from British Columbia and Ontario, Nova Scotia becomes the latest Canadian province to declare how its quota of study permit applications for 2024 will be distributed across sectors and institutions • As in Ontario, private institutions and language schools stand to be the most negatively affected by the distribution arrangement, but some public universities will also see significant reductions in study permit applications • All Canadian provinces have now distributed their allocation of study permit applications for 2024, and all are now also issuing provincial attestation letters (PALs) V.5336
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We asked the major contestants of the 29 May elections about immigration. Illustration: Lisa Nelson Today’s questions and answers to the major political parties deal with immigration. We emailed our questions to the ANC, DA, EFF, IFP, FF Plus, ActionSA, PA, MK Party, and RISE Mzansi on 13 March and sent follow-up queries to those who did not respond. Some have still not responded. Answers are very lightly edited for grammar and typos. Does your party support continued extensions of the Zimbabwe Exemption Permit (ZEP)? V.5337
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